Winners of the Williamsburg Pottery's pumpkin pie contest share their stories and recipes

Pumpkin pie may be a Thanksgiving staple, but three Williamsburg women made the traditional dish into their own award-winning creations.

Danielle Nardi, Alyssa Spoor and Colleen Sinnott took first, second and third prizes, respectively, in last month's Pumpkin Pie Bake-Off sponsored by the Williamsburg Pottery.

Over two weekend days in mid-October, shoppers judged the pies in Most Beautiful and Most Delicious categories.

Nardi was the top vote getter with 43 percent of the overall votes. Her pie is a takeoff on a pumpkin cheesecake with rich ingredients.

Spoor took second prize winning 39 percent of the Most Beautiful votes. Candied pecans, chocolate and a bourbon sauce drizzled on the pie caught the shoppers' attention.

Sinnott used a family recipe loaded with spices to win 22 percent of the votes in the Most Delicious category.

Danielle Nardi, first place winner

Nardi based her top-winning recipe on one she saw on the PBS series, "The Pioneer Woman," though she says, "I changed it around a bit."

She loves to bake but confesses, "I'm not a big pumpkin pie person." Originally she wanted to make a pumpkin cheesecake. But when the contest stipulated pies only, she said she decided to incorporate some of the ingredients that would have gone into her cheesecake, such as a graham cracker crust, heavy cream and "my husband's good bourbon.

"It is more of a pie that people who don't like pumpkin pie would like," she says.

With the holiday approaching, Nardi will definitely be making her pie again.

"We're going to California for Thanksgiving, and everyone wants to taste the award-winning pie," she said.

Ingredients

For the Crust:

1 1/2 package graham crackers (about 15 cookie sheets)

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 stick butter, melted

For the filling:

1 3-ounce box vanilla pudding (not instant)

1 cup half-and-half

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

2 tablespoons whiskey

1/2 cup (plus 3 tablespoons) fresh pumpkin puree

1/2 cup (additional) heavy cream

2 tablespoons brown sugar

Extra graham cracker crumbs, for garnish

Instructions

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Grind graham crackers in a food processor. Add powdered sugar and melted butter and process until totally combined. Press into the bottom and sides of a pie pan until nice and firm. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until warm and set. Remove from oven and allow crust to cool completely.

In a medium saucepan, mix dry pudding mix with half-and-half and cream. Add spices. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is bubbly and thick. Remove from heat and stir in whiskey. Add pumpkin and stir to combine. Place lid on pot and set aside to cool. When cool enough, place pot in the fridge to cool completely.

When mixture is cool, remove from the fridge. In a mixing bowl, add the additional 1/2 cup heavy cream and brown sugar. Beat until very light and fluffy. Fold in pumpkin cream mixture until combined. Pour into cooled crust.

Cover and refrigerate for a couple of hours or overnight. Crumble graham crackers on top.

Alyssa Spoor, second place winner

"I grew up in Kentucky baking with my mother and my grandmother," says Spoor. "They have a secret family pie crust recipe. I got the recipe but I haven't been able to do it as well as they do."

Spoor must have mastered the recipe well enough to take second prize. Though she bakes cakes, pastries, pies and cookies, she said this was the first pumpkin pie she ever made, from a recipe she made up. It was also the first contest she ever entered.

"Since I'm from Kentucky, I definitely wanted to use bourbon," she says. Whiskey was an ingredient in both her pie filling and the sauce on top.

Ingredients

Filling:

15 ounces pure pumpkin

2 eggs

1 egg yolk

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1 tablespoon bourbon

3/4 cup lightly packed brown sugar

2 teaspoons ginger

2 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

Crust:

Family recipe, pie crust made with cooking oil

Pie Toppings:

Bourbon sauce:

2 1/2 tablespoons bourbon

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup water

Pinch of salt

1/2 cup heavy cream

Chocolate:

4 ounces 100 percent cacao chocolate for melting

Whipped Topping for serving:

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1 tablespoon ginger maple syrup

Pinch of salt

Dash of cinnamon

Candied pecan pieces:

1 cup chopped pecans

1/4 egg white

2 tablespoons plus 1 1/2 teaspoons brown sugar

Pinch of salt

Instructions

Candied Pecan Pieces:

Preheat oven to 275 degrees. On a baking sheet, lay out parchment paper and spray with cooking spray. Beat egg white until stiff, add vanilla and sugar. Stir until incorporated, mix pecan pieces in the mixture until coated and spread on baking sheet. Bake until browned, about 10 minutes. These pecan pieces will line the rim of the pumpkin pie for decoration and a crunchy taste.